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Chapter 06
The corners of Yoo Eunseol’s hair were still damp, and Geum Seolha’s eyelids trembled slightly when she noticed.
‘Earlier, Geum Jugang said I had good instincts.’
He had even added that he had already given her a hint.
Geum Seolha swallowed.
It couldn’t be a coincidence that Geum Jugang’s subtle reactions and words were resurfacing in her mind now.
Meanwhile, Yoo Eunseol carefully lowered Geum Seolha onto the bed.
“Miss, did anything happen with Young Master Jugang by any chance?”
At the cautious question, Geum Seolha hesitated.
If she told the truth, Eunseol would probably worry.
As her answer was delayed, Yoo Eunseol’s expression darkened.
“Nothing happened.”
The one who interrupted was Ha Dowoon.
Yoo Eunseol visibly relaxed at his words.
When Geum Seolha stared at him, Ha Dowoon slowly shook his head.
The message was clear—don’t say anything else.
Geum Seolha kept her mouth shut.
‘Something definitely happened. I’ll have to ask Dowoon later when we’re alone.’
Thanks to Ha Dowoon, the situation was temporarily settled.
“Then that’s a relief. You need to take your medicine too, so you should eat first.”
Yoo Eunseol gestured, and Ha Dowoon placed down the tray he had been carrying for her.
As Geum Seolha looked at the meal laid out before her, her expression turned strange.
A bowl of pale rice porridge and two side dishes.
It was a rather simple meal, and her eyes narrowed.
“Hey, Eunseol.”
“Yes?”
“Is Geumrin Merchant Group extremely poor by any chance?”
At the question, Yoo Eunseol blinked before frantically shaking her head.
“Of course not.”
“Then are we tightening our belts because of some reckless investment?”
As Geum Seolha stared at the meal and spoke, Yoo Eunseol finally understood what she meant and laughed awkwardly.
“Not at all. It’s just that I thought it would be better for you to eat porridge for now, so I prepared something simple… that’s all.”
Eunseol.
Wouldn’t it be better to hide that bitter expression while saying that?
As Yoo Eunseol’s face grew darker and darker, Geum Seolha finally understood and squeezed her eyes shut.
‘I was supposed to be the daughter of a wealthy family!’
Right.
No wonder her luck had seemed unusually good.
The world would never be that kind to her.
‘Of course.’
Geum Seolha picked up her spoon and stirred the white porridge.
‘Looking at my room and the hallways I briefly saw, this definitely doesn’t seem like a poor household…’
Which meant they were only stingy with her.
That made her feel even worse.
As she stuffed a spoonful of porridge into her mouth, her eyes flashed fiercely.
Yoo Eunseol and Ha Dowoon, who cared deeply for her, would never have touched her share.
Besides, neither of them had personalities that could be pushed around easily.
‘Then the person behind this has to be someone above those two.’
Considering that the original Geum Seolha’s personality had been just as strong as her own, the culprit was likely someone with considerable status.
‘Once I catch them, they’re dead.’
While shoveling porridge into her mouth, Geum Seolha narrowed down the list of suspects.
That alone eliminated quite a few people.
By the time she finished fueling her competitive spirit, the porridge bowl had been completely emptied.
“I’ll go get your medicine.”
Geum Seolha nodded.
Yoo Eunseol busily left the room.
Naturally, Ha Dowoon moved to follow her out, but Geum Seolha grabbed the edge of his clothing.
“Wait.”
When Ha Dowoon turned around, Geum Seolha rested her chin on one hand while seated.
“Don’t we have a few things to talk about, Dowoon?”
“…If you command it, I will answer.”
“I have a lot of questions, but let’s start with this. Why did you tell Eunseol that nothing happened earlier?”
Technically, nothing had happened.
Yet both Yoo Eunseol’s question and Ha Dowoon’s answer had felt oddly suspicious.
Like a predator refusing to let its prey escape, Geum Seolha’s sharp gaze locked onto him.
Ha Dowoon parted his lips.
“Because there was a time in the past when you were placed in serious danger because of Young Master Jugang.”
“Then why, whenever I got caught up among my cousins and ended up in dangerous situations, did you tell me to stay near that guy instead?”
If he wasn’t trustworthy, he shouldn’t have said such things at all.
‘Though he always sounded reluctant when he said it.’
Geum Seolha frowned as though staring at a puzzle she couldn’t solve.
Ha Dowoon spoke again.
“It was because of a promise.”
“A promise? Between who and who?”
“After that incident, while Eunseol was crying, you personally said those words.”
“…I did?”
She had tried digging for clues, yet somehow only ended up with more questions.
“Your exact words were: ‘He’s utterly unreliable and makes me sick, but when it comes to keeping promises, he’s absolutely strict. You can trust him in that much.'”
“So Eunseol trusts him because of that?”
“Because you said so, Miss.”
Geum Seolha slowly tapped the table.
Something felt close enough to grasp, yet remained just out of reach.
“Fine. We’ll leave that for now.”
Whatever promise existed between her and Geum Jugang, and whatever had made her trust him, Ha Dowoon clearly didn’t know any more than this.
‘I’ll have to interrogate Geum Jugang later.’
Who knew how much that fox-like bastard would reveal, but it seemed like the surest method.
“Earlier, when I tried to go find Eunseol, you stopped me.”
“…”
“What did you know that made you block my way?”
Ha Dowoon’s lips flattened into a straight line.
A heavy silence settled between them.
“Does it have something to do with Eunseol changing clothes?”
At the question that struck directly at the heart of the matter, Ha Dowoon’s eyes trembled for an instant.
He concealed it quickly, but Geum Seolha didn’t miss it.
“It wasn’t just changing clothes, was it? It looked like she had to wash herself too.”
“Lady Seolha.”
“Strange, isn’t it? The more I think about it, the more only bad possibilities come to mind.”
By now, Geum Seolha was already certain.
His reaction had confirmed it.
This was merely verification.
“I can only think of something like someone dumping something all over Eunseol.”
Ha Dowoon lowered his gaze, his expression becoming even heavier.
“So stop making that face and explain properly, Ha Dowoon.”
“…It’s not something that can be dealt with easily.”
“Whether something can be dealt with or not isn’t your decision. It’s mine.”
Geum Seolha practically growled at him.
She may have spent several days confined to her room, but she hadn’t neglected to understand her situation.
“You are my bodyguard.”
“And Eunseol is my maid.”
“…”
“I don’t treat either of you carelessly, so who dares treat you carelessly?”
Fire blazed in Geum Seolha’s eyes.
They burned hot enough to seem tangible.
Ha Dowoon quietly watched her before releasing a deep sigh.
“Eunseol will make a fuss if she finds out I told you.”
“If I hear about this from someone else, I’ll make an even bigger fuss. If you think that’s preferable, keep your mouth shut.”
Faced with Geum Seolha’s smooth-flowing threat, Ha Dowoon finally spoke.
“It was probably the other maids.”
“The other maids? Why?”
Yoo Eunseol was overly protective when it came to Geum Seolha’s safety, but she was quick-witted and capable.
She wasn’t the sort of person who would casually earn others’ hostility.
“Do you know who currently manages the household affairs of the Geum family?”
“No. But since that should have originally been my mother’s position… I suppose my aunt is handling it.”
“That is the problem.”
Ha Dowoon spoke bitterly.
“They can’t openly discriminate against you or directly act against you. That would attract attention and create complications. So they resort to methods like this.”
Geum Seolha tilted her head before slowly speaking.
“I understand who did it. But you’re leaving out the most important part, Dowoon.”
“…”
“Why is my aunt doing this to me?”
She didn’t expect to be lovingly cared for simply because she was an orphaned niece who had lost both parents.
‘But this is a different matter entirely.’
This wasn’t neglect.
It was outright bullying.
“It’s because the position of Young Master hasn’t been decided yet.”
“The successor position of Geumrin Merchant Group?”
“Yes.”
As Ha Dowoon nodded, Geum Seolha frowned.
“It’s still vacant?”
Her father, who had originally held the position of Young Master, had died.
Since then, the seat had remained empty.
But what did that have to do with her?
Geum Seolha blinked.
“Why?”
“The selection of Geumrin Merchant Group’s successor only occurs once per generation.”
“Which is exactly why I’m asking. Since my father passed away, shouldn’t the next candidate naturally inherit the position—”
She stopped mid-sentence.
The memory of Geum Seolha from the original novel, who eventually became the Young Master, suddenly surfaced.
“Wait. Are you saying there was never any proper discussion or mention of the next successor?”
“After losing the Young Master and his wife, the Family Head secluded himself for a long time.”
No one had dared bring up succession while the Family Head was drowning in grief.
Now that the situation became clear, Geum Seolha grabbed her head.
So all this troublesome, irritating bullying was because…
“They’re wary of me because the Young Master position still hasn’t been filled?”
“Since the Family Head has deliberately left the position vacant, their concern isn’t entirely unfounded.”
“Hah. Is my uncle really that incompetent?”
She sneered.
To think he’d feel threatened enough to bully a little niece.
Why did so many nations historically adopt primogeniture?
‘Because the firstborn has time to establish a foundation.’
There was an age gap between Geum Seolha and her uncles that could never be bridged.
“Do they really have enough free time to waste on such pointless paranoia?”
“The Family Head treasured your father greatly, so their concern isn’t completely irrational.”
“Not irrational? Does it look like Grandfather is cherishing me right now?”
Geum Seolha laughed cynically.
If he truly treasured her, there shouldn’t have been room for this kind of harassment in the first place.
“So in the end, this is all thanks to my beloved grandfather. Judging by appearances, he doesn’t seem to take proper care of me either.”
Not once during her illness had she heard that her grandfather was worried about her or asking after her condition.
“That is…”
“Or is this supposed to be some test? Something I should overcome on my own?”
Neither possibility pleased her.
“This family is a complete disaster. A rotten mess.”
Geum Seolha clicked her tongue.
Lacking luck with parents and family once should have been enough.
Yet Geum Seolha from The Heavenly Martial Emperor seemed to have suffered much the same fate as herself.
“What’s the best way to crush them all and still have people praise me for handling it well?”
Hearing Geum Seolha mutter those words, Ha Dowoon seriously questioned whether he had heard correctly.
“…Pardon?”
